Proposed Law Could Remove Georgia DUI from Your Record
In an article posted today on the AJC’s website, Georgia Representative Rusty Kidd of Milledgeville has proposed legislation that could give DUI offenders a second chance to erase a DUI off of their record.
The Bill, HB 799, would apparently require offenders to go five years without any driving infractions in order to be eligible for a second chance under the legislation.
Under current Georgia law, a DUI remains on your record forever. Expungement is all but non-existent in DUI situations, and any finding of guilt, innocence, and even “no contest” pleas will stay on your record. Frequently, I answer questions relating to background checks, employment screens, and insurance inquiries, and the answer is typically that unless you have an agreement, in writing, for the charges to be expunged, it will likely appear on your record. Georgia law does not even allow for First Offender pleas on DUI charges, even though those accused of felonies are frequently granted first offender status.
With punishments for DUI convictions generally increasing, and anti drunk driving organizations calling for tougher DUI sanctions, like ignition interlock devices being placed on all offender’s vehicles, the Representative’s bill certainly seems to be a step in a different direction. I can only imagine that there will be many terms and conditions attached to potential pleas or cases worked out under the proposed legislation. Probation, mandatory treatment, fines, and other conditions are already usually required in many DUI cases, in an effort to both punish and rehabilitate drunk driving offenders. Additionally, there will likely be heavy opposition to the bill from organizations already calling for tougher DUI laws. The question is, what would differ under this proposed new law? Do you think it would be a good idea to give a second chance on a DUI conviction? Is Georgia law unreasonable in not currently allowing a pathway to having a first DUI charged removed from your criminal record?
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Comments on Proposed Law Could Remove Georgia DUI from Your Record
If there is no record after 5 years a person should get a second chance. I hope hb 799 will pass.
I hope it passes too. It is soo hard to get a job or even graduate school with a DUI on your record. Employers dont even care if you changed your life around or not.
I hope this bill passes. A lot of young people can not get a job with a DUI on their record. Most companies will not interview anyone that has been convicted of DUI. For a young person this could be devasting. If they keep their record clean for a certain period of time, they should be given a second chance.
I agree that this proposed law should be passed. I am currently in this position. I have a graduate degree, MBA, that is overshadowed by a DUI that was so little over the limit that the DUI was reduced to reckless driving, This charge is STILL on my record after 5 years of me steering clear except 1 speeding and tag ticket. Being that the laws in Georgia are too harsh for a first time offense, I am fresh out of Graduate school and have been unemployed for months even with the MBA. Please pass this!!!
My situation is a bit different…..whether this bill passes or not my situation will not change. For nine years I have lived under the shadow of a first time offenders violation. though driving with a BAL twice the legal limit, that issue was never prosecuted. A conviction of less safe to drive and vehicular homicide due to reckless neglegence left the driver a brief stint in the county jail and less than a year probation.
However, the record has not been erased by any means….I am the widow of the man whose life was taken by the DUI driver. My sons are fatherless, my husband’s mom, also a widow, is now childless and countless people who loved, admired and learned much from my husband still miss him terribly. He was an awesome husband. This will be the 10th Valentine’s Day I have re-read the last card I got from him. Do you have any idea what it is like to sleep alone with no lovers arms to hold you? Can you fathom how his lips never touched mine again after he kissed me goodbye that evening at the door. He smiled a mischeveous grin and said, “I’ll be back” but someone’s first offense took him out of our lives forever. Every morning I woke up and made coffee. We shared our plans for the day and our coffee. Now, I sip coffee alone and wish that I could hold his hand just once more. I’m really sorry when it is hard for anyone to get a job, even with a graduate degree. Three months before my husband was killed he recieved his credentials. Our family had saved and put off buying needed items so that dad could return to school and make his dream come true. I guess some would say that was a wasted effort after he never really got to use his masters either. DUI is really harsh….especially on this side of the issue. My husband will not be attending his sons wedding later this year, he would have been the bestman. He will never hold his grandchildren. He didn’t get to see his son granduate from his alma mater, or even see his youngest graduate from highschool. I would like to propose that there would be no need to expunge the record if people would not drive after drinking. Then your consequences would not be so harsh. And my husband would still be coming home and loving life with family and friends and using the credentials he sacrificed a lot to obtain. He could have been helping lots of people live life more fully. Second chances are wonderful, wish I could just have one more special day together. I hope you all get the chance to have a full, abundant life and never have to go through causing a death because you didn’t learn your lesson on your first offense. If the bill is passed and your record is erased ….I ask you to remember mine still stands. There is no second chance for us.
DUI is certainly a serious issue in Georgia, but making lifetime criminals out of first time DUIs is over the top. Everyone deserves a second chance. If after 5 years you have behaved yourself, then let the offender pay a fee to have it removed. It’s only fair.